How to write a plot outline: The Infographic

April 8, 2015

Learning how to write a plot outline is an essential skill if you want to become a prolific author. Whether you find the distant target of reaching a substantial word length or the creation of a satisfying, forward-moving plot daunting, if you write a plot outline for your novel in advance you will have a blueprint that you can alter if necessary as you go. Our previous post on the subject suggested 7 ways you can outline your novel. We’ve since converted this information into the handy infographic below. Save it, pin it, or share it with writers you know who could benefit from having a clear structure in place before they begin writing their first drafts.

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Once you have your outline written, the matter of writing your first draft remains. Here are a few infographics on the subjects of outlining and writing first drafts to inspire you in the process of telling your story.

Other helpful infographics on how to to write a plot outline

The Hero’s Journey

Kansas University’s Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction has a useful page featuring a number of infographics that expand on the mythologist Joseph Campbell’s plot structure theory, ‘The Hero’s Journey’. You can view a simplified diagram of this plot type along with more detailed visualizations that show how expansive you can be when you write a plot outline.

10 Rules for Writing First Drafts

Over at Copyblogger, Demian Farnworth put together this poster that gives the 10 cardinal rules for getting the first rough draft of your manuscript finished. Consider the fourth rule: ‘Allow your imagination to go to weird places. Nothing is off limits. You can clean up your mess later.’ Reserve any desire to have every word and sentence perfect until you reach the editing and revision stages. Using this early freedom allows you to become aware of unexpected creative possibilities buried within your original story idea.